Police fired tear spray to break up crowds of protesters in Mong Kok, after more than thirty people were arrested as scuffles broke out with police during a court-ordered clearance operation.

Shortly after 7pm, police officers fired tear spray from a pump on a raised platform at scores of protesters who remained gathered in Portland Street outside Langham Place.

Many protesters ran as police began to spray them. After running for a block, protesters turned and unfurled their umbrellas.

Police officers, wearing helmets and masks, continued to push the crowds further down Portland Street towards Tsim Sha Tsui.

At Changsha Street, many protesters were forced to turn back onto Nathan Road.

Protesters remained there, chanting the slogan, “Shame on the police.”

Several protesters pushed to the ground and had their hands tied with plastic restraints before being arrested, television pictures showed.

The move by police came after a plain-clothed police officer warned protesters that a higher degree of force would be used should if they did not leave the scene.

Police officers had earlier warned protesters to leave the area, saying they were taking part in an “unlawful assembly”.

Journalists were also warned to stay on the pavement to avoid getting sprayed.

Earlier in the day, more than thirty people including lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung were arrested during scuffles with police.

There were also reports of a few protesters getting pepper-sprayed.

The development came minutes after police told the hordes of protesters to stop obstructing bailiffs from executing a court injunction to reopen Argyle Street.

Speaking through a megaphone, a police chief inspector gave a “final warning” at around 2.45pm that the Occupy supporters should leave.

Officers told protesters to “stop immediately” or police would conduct arrests on suspicion of contempt of court. Police said they would use minimum force to make the arrests, if necessary.

It also warned others against swarming the protest site. "Other citizens, especially students, should not go to the [protest] area if it is not absolutely necessary so as to avoid getting hurt unnecessarily,” the police statement read.

The force also said they would take resolute action against anyone who obstructed the bailiffs.

The “removal team” composed of 20 bailiffs had started the clearance at around 10.30am about an hour after a lawyer representing the minibus company that won the injunction read out the court document to the crowd.

The bailiffs dismantled heavy barricades - tied together with rope, plastic ties and strong adhesives - within 45 minutes at the junction of Argyle Street and Nathan Road then proceeded into the protest zone to take down remaining tents.

However, the bailiffs’ advance stalled somewhat in the face of a horde of protesters who demanded they be allowed to dismantle a makeshift wooden stage by themselves.

The scene had also been punctuated by chants for genuine suffrage and loud complaints from protesters that the injunction orders were unclear.

Leading the din of angry voices was Hong Kong Federation of Students representative Yvonne Leung, who questioned police and bailiffs on which areas were set to be cleared, and whether police were properly informing the crowds on when and if they would intervene at the bailiffs’ request.

After negotiations, the bailiffs allowed the protesters to take away the wooden stage within 30 minutes.

However, when the deadline lapsed, the bailiffs returned and were bombarded with further questions by the protesters, who complained that they were getting shoved back so that the removal team could advance to Shanghai Street for further operations. The Occupy protesters reasoned that there were alternative routes to Shanghai Street.

Bailiffs requested police assistance and tensions rose as officers formed a phalanx on Argyle Street to push towards Portland Street.

“We are moving back slowly but you need to judge the situation,” a Federation of Students member said.

A group of protesters, one carrying a yellow umbrella, pushed past the police defences in an apparent attempt to reclaim the protest zone. But the group was promptly blocked by officers.

At about 3.15pm, the police had largely taken over the section of Argyle Street that needed to be cleared.

A protester is arrested the HSBC building on Argyle Street. Photo: Felix Wong

Protesters as well as onlookers and journalists were retreating towards Portland Street, stalling traffic there. Shopkeepers on the street shuttered their stores.

The scuffles died down, but police continued forming human chains near Shanghai Street, which runs parallel to and one block away from Portland Street, to push the crowds further away.

“People at the scene please note that you could be taking part in an illegal assembly,” a policeman announced via a megaphone. “If you dont leave as soon as possible, police will take resolute action.”

Police forcefully pushed protesters into a narrow pavement outside Langham Place, causing people to slip and fall.

Early this morning, protesters donned protective gear such as gas masks and helmets in case the clear-out turned aggressive.

However, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, speaking this morning to the Executive Council, said he believed the police would handle the clearance professionally. “I have full confidence in the police’s professionalism and its law enforcement,” he said.

Speaking in Beijing on Tuesday, Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said the police would give full support to the bailiffs during the operation.

“If the road can be cleared, it would be a relief to those members of the public and businesses that have been affected for almost two months,” she said.

Some 3,000 policemen were placed on standby for today’s operations. But yesterday, the police force said it foresaw little likelihood of violence as they would only intervene if needed, and many protesters had signalled they would retreat.

Ernest Kao, Chris Lau and Lai Ying-kit

Additional reporting by Ng Kang-chung and Timmy Sung

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